Alan Naiman was known for being frugal. He liked saving money and was happy wearing jeans from Costco so he could put his pennies in the bank. The 63-year-old social worker never married or had kids. He spent his life taking care of his older brother who passed away in 2013. Children were important to him so when he passed away from cancer, he left the money he saved over the years to children’s charities.
But what surprised even Naiman’s friends, was how much the thrifty man managed to save over the years. He donated more than $11-million to Seattle area charities devoted to helping kids, including the Pediatric Interim Care Center and Make-A-Wish. Naiman’s friend, Shashi Karan, says saving money was more of a game than a sacrifice to his pal and that he was excited to think about how much good his money would do when the time came.
"'My gift is going to be bigger than their annual budget. It's going to blow them away,'" Karan remembers Naiman saying. "And it did."
Chief Development Officer Jessica Ross said "For someone to live their life the way Alan did — and then leave a legacy like this to so many worthy organizations — is an inspiration. He lived his life for the purpose of making others lives better".